Lyric, an Airbnb-backed hospitality startup, is drastically downsizing due to the coronavirus pandemic's devastating impact on travel. In late March 2020, the company informed approximately 80 out of its 100 remaining employees—or 80% of its staff—that their jobs could not be guaranteed if the economic environment did not improve within two months. This followed a previous layoff of about 20% of its workforce in February. The San Francisco-based company, which had been operating nearly 600 furnished rental units across 14 cities, also plans to abandon most of its leased properties, retaining only a core location in New York City. The global health crisis caused a standstill in travel, leading to missed revenue targets and forcing severe operational cuts across the hospitality industry.
